15 Photos That Display the Mystery Behind Old Treestands

Whenever I come across an old treestand, it takes me back to my roots of deer hunting.

Every one of us has come across one of those ancient and decrepit wooden slices of a previous hunting life. Someone somewhere found a spot in the woods that was certainly the 'honey hole' and set it up just to their liking.

We probably found it along the same path to our own honey hole, and when we did, it filled our hearts with the knowledge that one day long ago, someone agreed that this was the spot.

Now, after years of weather and property that changed hands, only the mystery remains. Who built it? How long ago? Did they get their big buck here?

We may never know, but that won't stop us from wondering.

As you look at these old pieces of wood propped into the trees, it will remind you of days gone by and the glory of the old hunting community, laid down long before portable stands and the tree climbers of today.

When it comes time to take your son or daughter into the deer woods for the first time, don't forget to point out those hardy old treestands that the 'old timers' used. For posterity's sake, yes, but maybe more importantly, for safety's sake!

Yearning to walk in the woods is what got us out there in the first place. The questions that arose once we got there made us love it all the more.

Maybe look through them one more time and decide where you would put the board or the nail. How would you re-build one of these glorious old stands? You may never have all the answers, and the mystery will remain. But maybe that's the way it's supposed to be.